The illustrious S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is home to a good number of shares with true blue chip status.
So many, in fact, it can be hard to decide which ones to include in your portfolio.
In order to narrow things down, I have picked out two blue chip ASX 200 shares which are highly rated right now. They are as follows:
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CSL Limited (ASX: CSL)
The first ASX 200 blue chip share to look at is CSL. It is one of the world's leading biotechnology companies, responsible for the CSL Behring and Seqirus businesses. CSL Behring is the leader in plasma therapies, whereas Seqirus is the number two player in flu vaccines.
CSL has been a relatively positive performer during FY 2021 despite facing a number of headwinds. It is expecting to report profit of US$2,170 million to US$2,265 million in constant currency this year. This represents year on year growth of just 3% to 8%.
And while its near term performance is likely to be impacted by plasma collections headwinds, these are now easing.
Looking ahead, CSL appears well-placed for growth thanks to strong demand for its core therapies, growing demand for flu vaccines, and its lucrative R&D pipeline. The latter has a number of potentially lucrative products in development that could be a big boost to its sales.
Analysts at UBS currently have a buy rating and $330.00 price target on the company's shares.
REA Group Limited (ASX: REA)
Another ASX 200 blue chip ASX share to look at is property listings company REA Group.
Trading conditions have been tough for REA Group in recent years because of the housing market downturn and then the pandemic. However, thanks to the strength of its business model, it still delivered robust profit growth.
So with the housing market booming, the wind is well and truly in its sails now. Combined with its growing international operations, price increases, and new revenue streams, this bodes well for its growth in the coming years.
One broker that is particularly positive on REA Group is Macquarie. It has an outperform rating and $179.10 price target on its shares.
